294
FORENSIC MEDICINE UNIT
DEPARTMENT OF MORBID ANATOMY
ST. THOMAS HOSPITAL MEDICAL SCHOOL
LONDON SE1 7EH
PROFESS©F+++-SPENCER
H.R.M. JOHNSON
*
2
TELEPHONE 01 928 9292
EXT. 2702 2670
The Government laboratory report on the deceased which was negative for drugs.
The report of Mr. Cimino.
A report of the fingerprint department.
The report of Inspector Grant re handwriting.
Opinion of Mr. Edgley re handwriting.
Photostats of three re-prints of articles relating to suicide with multiple gunshot wounds.
An album of photographs of the flat where the deceased was found dead and its surroundings, close-up photographs of the body and photographs taken of the body at the post mortem carried out by Dr. Wong.
The post mortem report of Dr. Wong is very clear. He appears to have carried out a thorough examination and the details of the bullet wounds and tracks are easily understood and appear to correspond with the photographs taken of these wounds. There appear to be no contradictions and his cause of death appears to be correct. I agree with his comments made at the inquest relating to the alcohol level found in the deceased's blood and with his remark that he cannot state the order in which the wounds were sustained. The only point I would add to Dr. Wong's report is to stress that the bullet track described in his post mortem report as number 1 went through the aorta. Such a wound would cause torrential haemorrhage into the chest and abdomen as borne out by his finding of 500cc of fluid and clotted blood in the left side of the chest and 800cc of blood in the abdomen. In some ways this wound is more important than that of the heart itself, because while the heart is pumping a wound in its substance does not necessarily allow a large quantity of blood to escape at each pumping action because the muscle itself contracts around the wound restricting the escape of blood.
As to Dr. Ong's expert opinion I would like to state that Dr. Ong is a well known figure in forensic pathology with an international reputation and very great experience particularly in gunshot wounds. I would agree with his report without significant reservation, apart from my comment about the aorta referred to above under Dr. Wong's report. I have studied all the references to the literature quoted by Dr. Ong in his evidence at the inquest and I have managed to find further cases published more recently.
We now come to the evidence of Professor Gibson. Professor Gibson is a pathologist of very great repute and standing in the profession but is not himself a specialist forensic pathologist. I would not go as far as he does in stating the order in which he thinks the wounds were inflicted. His answers to questions on cross-
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